I heard him on some internet radio station and immediately wrote down the name of the artist and cd. Next time I was in the record store, I paid top dollar for Figure 8. Two songs that really stand out for me: Son of Sam and Junk Bond Trader. I never heard his songs broadcast anywhere else but on the soundtrack of Good Will Hunting. P.S. I'm glad to hear I'm hip.
It should be noted that his three biggest influences (arguably) are Nick Drake (that's obvious), Lennon/McCartney (no surprise) and Ray Davies. Go buy any of the Kinks records from '66 to '70 and you'll see what I mean.
...and there go the chills up my spine. Poor little f#@ker, he should have kept going. This is a day we'll all be telling people about. He'll end up being a massive cult figure, much bigger than Jeff Buckley, and probably more so than Nick Drake.
I think this is the first death of a musician that's really hit me. I liked Nirvana, but wasn't really big into them when Cobain comitted suicide and the Tupac/Biggie murders weren't too surprising to me. This one hurts because Elliott Smith's writing and singing just drew me in. It's a damn shame and I'll definitely cherish my memories of the one time I got to see him in concert.
I saw him perform at the Grammies. I followed the Portland scene and heard Heatmiser before anybody knew who Elliot Smith was. So sad.
Condor Ave off of Roman Candle ranks right up there with his best songs. I'm kind of surprised how much his death affected me. I quit following indie rock a while ago except for Elliott Smith and a few other bands. And I'm usually not affected by the death of somebody I didn't know personally. But his music is just so intimate and I love it so much. And he was not just a great musician live, but he had such a humble, friendly presence on stage. I was at one show where, in between songs, a girl shouted out "I love you, Elliott!" and he got so embarrassed and red-faced he couldn't begin the next song.
I got this email from a fellow indie junkie like myself this morning. That was my favorite song from that movie, kinda haunting. I’ve since been told he had some 5-6 songs in Goodwill Hunting. Personally, though I’ve lost a relative and 2 friends to suicide, I find it cowardice & selfish. May his eternal soul rest in peace.
I've never had the pleasure of seeing him live. But reading about his shows, I had a feeling his life may end suddenly and tragically. Still, I'm sad and shocked. My favorite Elliot Smith song is "Say Yes". Great lyrics, great understated voice.
Just finished listening to LA on Figure 8. It ends with this line repeating: Last night I was about to throw it all away. Well, damn. I guess he decided to go ahead and do that.
best god damn singer songwriter of our generation. "help me kill my time, cus I'll never be fine." E.S. the good die young.
RIP, although I never really liked any of his music...but I'll try to download some of the songs listed above. Too bad his death was overshadowed by Re-Run.